Behavioural Supports Ontario

The Behavioural Supports Ontario (BSO) Initiative is a significant step forward in delivering higher quality care that is more sensitive to the needs of older adults with responsive behaviours in long-term care, the community, and local area hospitals. The Erie St. Clair Local Health Integration Network (ESC LHIN) BSO initiative focuses on client needs, as well as the families who are in many cases the primary caregivers. It can be challenging for these caregivers, as they are often called upon to make decisions on behalf of their loved one. The Erie St. Clair BSO model works to provide supports for caregivers in desperate need of help as they try to cope. The ESC LHIN has invested $2.4 million towards helping to implement the three pillars of the provincial strategy.

Improve System Coordination so that clients and families are better linked to the care and supports they need, when they need it.

Provide Interdisciplinary Care with specialized teams who understand how to care for people with responsive behaviours. In Erie St. Clair, we have invested in:

Four long-term care lead teams

Three system navigators

Expanding three Geriatric Mental Health Outreach Teams (GMHOT)

Community Care Access Centre (CCAC) Care Coordinators devoted to patients who are medically stable but have responsive behaviours creating barriers to discharge

The ESC LHIN has built upon the success demonstrated by the BSO CCAC Care Coordinator in Windsor/Essex by investing and expanding this model for the Chatham-Kent and Sarnia/Lambton communities.

Build System Capacity: Currently over 2000 providers* in Erie St. Clair received specialized education and training by the BSO Regional Education Coordinator. The ESC LHIN continues to build system capacity by leveraging a “hub and spoke” model with 32* long-term care homes throughout our region.

As a result of measured system improvements, the ESC LHIN has invested an additional $200,000 in annualized base funding in 2013-14 to sustain BSO, hold the gains achieved, and continue to improve local health care. In short, BSO in Erie St. Clair is delivering on our LHIN’s vision of better care, better value, and better experiences for clients and their families.